Charlotte Tilbury Glowgasm Face Palette On Textured Medium-Tan Skin

Charlotte Tilbury Glowgasm Face Palette On Textured Medium-Tan Skin

Summer Cosmetopia Digest   Sunday, June 09, 2019

The Charlotte Tilbury Glowgasm Face Palettes come in two variants - Lightgasm, for light to medium skins, and Lovegasm, for medium to dark skins. This post has the review and swatches of the Charlotte Tilbury Glowgasm palette in Lovegasm, and a tutorial of the palette used on textured, tan skin.
The Glowgasm palettes cost £60 each, and contain four shades - a "bronzer", a highlighter, a "multi-glow", and a "pop blush". The packaging is gorgeous, the whole thing feels and looks luxurious and heavy, and the pattern is very pretty.
Therein end the raves, for me at least. There are some real issues with this one. No, really - don't believe me? I have a proper demo of this thing right ahead.

Scroll down for the review, swatches, and demo of the Charlotte Tilbury Glowgasm Face Palette on textured medium-tan skin.

affiliate

Revolution x Carmi Make Magic Palette Review, Swatches, Duochrome Makeup Tutorial

Revolution x Carmi Make Magic Palette Review, Swatches, Duochrome Makeup Tutorial

Videos Cosmetopia Digest   Tuesday, June 04, 2019

Are you ready for this? Duochrome eyeshadows! Magical blending! Easy-to-do EOTDs with depth and dimension!
Meet the Revolution x Carmi Make Magic Eyeshadow Palette, launched by Revolution Beauty in collaboration with beauty YouTuber Carmi MUA. This is Makeup Revolution's second collab with Carmi.
The Carmi Make Magic Palette is very different from the Tammi Tropical Carnival Palette, that I reviewed here - that was a lot bolder, more summery - this one isn't seasonal, you can use it at any time. 
The palette costs just £10, and contains 20 eyeshadows, of which six are a bit larger, and include duochromes, foils, metallics, glitters, and shimmers. The rest are matte or pearly/shimmery, no glitters. The colour scheme includes something for everyone. There are perfectly work-friendly neutrals, including the ideal base shades for those who are tan/warm/medium/olive hued. There are pops of colour that will see you through Summer. There are rich, smoky shades. There are ice-queen pales. Best of all, there are warm and cool eyeshadows in here. In short, I think this is one of the most universal palettes I've seen in a long while.

Scroll down for my review and swatches of the Revolution x Carmi Make Magic Palette, and a duochrome eye makeup tutorial.

affiliate

By Terry Lip-Expert Matte Liquid Lipsticks Review, Swatches, Demo

By Terry Lip-Expert Matte Liquid Lipsticks Review, Swatches, Demo

Swatches Cosmetopia Digest   Monday, May 20, 2019

Cremes may come and glosses may go, but my heart shall continue to flip at the sight of a long-wearing matte liquid lipstick. Hopefully, the trend isn't over yet - there are brands that are continuing to launch liquid lippies, By Terry having come out with a set of 15 shades for Spring 2019, called the Lip-Expert Liquid Lipsticks.
These come in shine and matte finishes. No prizes for guessing which I picked. 
The packaging is very different from other liquid lipsticks we've seen; this one is futuristic, and, for the want of a better term, very cool. Doe foot applicator. I picked up three shades, and returned one - shade 3 happens to be a bubblegum pink rather than the dusty rose they've advertised, but shade 2 is perfect for everyday wear, while shade 4 is a deeper colour that I'm embracing in my quest to get out of my comfort zone. But you'll see all of that in a minute.

Scroll down for the review and swatches of the By Terry Lip-Expert Matte Liquid Lipsticks.

affiliate

Benefit Cheekleaders Face Palette Review, Swatches, Demo

Benefit Cheekleaders Face Palette Review, Swatches, Demo

Reviews Cosmetopia Digest   Tuesday, May 14, 2019

The Benefit Blush Bar was among my Christmas goodies for 2018 - I love the comprehensive face palette; there's everything my cheeks need in one handy, travel-friendly box.
So, when the Benefit Cheekleaders palettes were launched for Spring 2019, I felt I didn't need them - two palettes were launched; the Pink Squad, and the Bronze Squad.
But. But. But. Benefit also launched two deeper versions of their iconic Hoola Bronzer - Hoola Caramel, and Hoola Toasted. Plus, there were two highlighters - Tickle, and Cookie. The last two were exclusive to the Cheekleaders palettes, and I was intrigued.
I found that both Cheekleaders palettes - and their mini versions, with three products each - contained FIVE FULL-SIZED box of powders, including ONE of the new highlighters. The Bronze version also had the new Hoola Caramel. So I treated myself to the Cheekleaders Bronze Squad palette, and to a single box of Hoola Toasted.

Scroll down for the review, swatches, and demo of the Benefit Cheekleaders Bronze Squad Face Palette, and for a comparison with the Benefit Blush Bar.

affiliate

Beauty Expert Collection Gold Edition Contents, Unboxing, Review: Ships WW

Beauty Expert Collection Gold Edition Contents, Unboxing, Review: Ships WW

Unboxing Cosmetopia Digest   Tuesday, August 21, 2018

Beauty Expert's latest edit is their best ever! ONE product in here is far more than the worth of the entire collection, and has me gobsmacked. Everything about each of these brands screams LUXURY, and everything is ideal for this season.
For those who came in late, Beauty Expert ships worldwide - they have seasonal curations of cult must-have beauty products in "collections", in a nice wash bag. Everything is full-sized, and the collections are worth far more than their price-tags, and sell out within seconds, if not minutes, of launching. I have my previous Beauty Expert collections all unboxed here.
The latest is the Gold Edition. Gold obviously stands for luxury, and the moment I heard the name of the edit, I knew we would only see high-end products in here.
This is what Beauty Expert says about this collection:

Discover the power of Gold in this luxurious edit of Gold-infused and Gold-inspired beauty products. We’ve handpicked six premium beauty products that will make you feel instantly more glamorous and glowing with radiance. This capsule collection includes skincare, body care and hair care products, so you can add a touch of Gold to every element of your beauty routine.
With six best-selling beauty products housed in a premium cosmetics bag, the Beauty Expert Collection: The Gold Edition is the perfect way to add a little luxury to your everyday. We’ve also included a special extra addition to help you create a Cleopatra-inspired eye look.

Now, there are six full-sized products in here, and a little extra mini. A total worth of more than £300, and a price-tag of just £99.
The Beauty Expert Collection Gold Edition is available worldwide NOW right here!

Scroll down for the contents of the Beauty Expert Collection Gold Edition.

affiliate . pr sample

By Terry Lip Powder Essence Is A Powder That Becomes Liquid!

By Terry Lip Powder Essence Is A Powder That Becomes Liquid!

Swatches Cosmetopia Digest   Saturday, July 28, 2018

I've been in a makeup rut for a while now. Everything feels same-old, same-old, you know? Warm neutral eyeshadow palettes with lots of orange-ish variants. Filter-ing foundation variants. Matte liquid lipsticks. Meh. I want new, exciting things!
That's when I saw the By Terry Lip Powder Essence on Feelunique, when I was browsing around with a birthday discount code. Guided by my intuition, I decided to buy it.
What is it? A POWDER. A powder that transforms into a long-wearing, highly pigmented, liquid lipstick, upon contact with the lips. I'm completely stunned.
While awaiting my order, I was plagued with doubts. How was a powder even going to go on my lips, let alone stay there? Would I not end up with a massive mess on my face? Would the powder not be drying on my already parched lips? What if I dropped the product and all the powder spilled out?

Scroll down for the review and demo of the By Terry Lip Powder Essence.

affiliate

Karl Lagerfeld x ModelCo Lip Lights Matte Liquid Lipsticks Review, Demo, Swatches

Karl Lagerfeld x ModelCo Lip Lights Matte Liquid Lipsticks Review, Demo, Swatches

Swatches Cosmetopia Digest   Sunday, June 17, 2018

When I heard that fashion supremo Karl Lagerfeld had collaborated with Australian beauty brand ModelCo to bring out an exclusive, limited edition makeup collection for Summer 2018, I was as excited as any makeup lover. This has been touted as the most anticipated makeup launch of this year.
The collection launched on May 14, and is 100% cruelty-free. There is a whole gamut of products in here - eyeshadow palettes, mascara, eyeliners, highlighters, makeup sets, makeup brushes, lip toppers, lip glosses, matte liquid lipsticks... pretty much everything except foundation itself. All products are one-stock-drop only.
I have the matte liquid lipsticks to show you. These are called the Lip Lights - as you've probably guessed, there is a light when you open the tube, which means you can apply this lipstick in the dark or in low light without accidentally endowing your ears in scarlet. There are eight shades in the matte liquid lipstick range, and each one costs £22 - for a 6ml tube.

Scroll down for the review, swatches, and demo of the Karl Lagerfeld x ModelCo Lip Lights Matte Liquid Lipsticks, and my thoughts on the whole collection.

affiliate

Revolution Pro Full Cover Camouflage Foundation Review, Demo, Test, Swatches

Revolution Pro Full Cover Camouflage Foundation Review, Demo, Test, Swatches

Swatches Cosmetopia Digest   Saturday, June 02, 2018

Revolution Pro's Full Cover Camouflage Foundation promises to cover blemishes, scars, and even tattoos. It is a vegan, cruelty-free foundation that costs just £7 for 25ml, and comes in 18 shades, just like other foundations and concealers from the Revolution Beauty range of products.
There is also a Full Cover Camouflage Concealer available, in 18 shades as well - review of that to follow soon. I call this one the best drugstore foundation of 2018, and the best drugstore full-coverage foundation.
I've live-tested it on VERY severe cystic acne and post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation - as you will see further below. For reference, I have very oily, acne-prone skin.

Scroll down for the review, live demo, and swatches of the Revolution Pro Full Cover Camouflage Foundation.

affiliate

Revolution Pro Supreme Matte Lip Pigments Review, Swatches, Demo

Revolution Pro Supreme Matte Lip Pigments Review, Swatches, Demo

Videos Cosmetopia Digest   Friday, May 25, 2018

The Revolution Pro Supreme Matte Lip Pigments are long-wearing cruelty-free liquid lipsticks from the professional range of Revolution Beauty. They cost just £4 each, and are supposed to be dupes for the NARS Power Matte Lip Pigments.
They come in a whopping 30 shades. Very impressive - there are foundations out there that don't have half as many shades. The shades range from white to black, and include neutrals, pinks, berries, brights, reds, and corals.
These claim to be transfer-proof, fully-pigmented, and long-wearing. Let's see if all that is true.

Scroll down for review, swatches, and demos of the Revolution Pro Supreme Matte Lip Pigments.

affiliate

Makeup Revolution Fast Base Foundation Stick Review, Demo On Oily Skin

Makeup Revolution Fast Base Foundation Stick Review, Demo On Oily Skin

Videos Cosmetopia Digest   Wednesday, May 02, 2018

Makeup Revolution's Fast Base Foundation Stick costs just £5, and is a buildable medium-to-full coverage foundation that blends out like a dream.
Let me get this straight. I dislike stick foundations. I've noticed that they go on streaky, are hard to blend out, and don't stay on very well on my freakishly oily skin.
This one is the exception. And, I can't get over the cost! It is cheaper than The Ordinary's foundations. There are 18 shades, with more being added soon. You can take it along while travelling; nothing happens when you drop it - been there, done that - and, while I require some mattifying powder over lunch, it does perform quite well on my skin. As well as the average high-end foundation does.

Scroll down for my review and demo of the Makeup Revolution Fast Base Foundation Stick.

affiliate

Rouge Dior Liquid Lipsticks Review, Swatches, Demo

Rouge Dior Liquid Lipsticks Review, Swatches, Demo

Swatches Cosmetopia Digest   Sunday, April 01, 2018

For some reason, the Rouge Dior Liquid Lipsticks came without much brouhaha. I mean, there is SO much noise about beauty launches these days... leaks on some Instagram accounts, debates over the leaks, pre-ponement of the launch date owing to said leak, PR parties, luxury holidays, massively over-egged packaging, more debates and controversies... I'm actually veering towards designer brands such as Chanel and Dior simply because of the lack of a hullabaloo over new releases.
I found these when Harrods had a 10% off sale, and they seemed a lot of fun. I had already picked up a few Armani Lip Magnets in store, and when I read that the formula was similarly non-drying, I knew I wanted these. They have a whopping 28 different shades - ARE YOU HEARING THIS, BRANDS COMING OUT WITH FOUNDATIONS AND CONCEALERS? - and a number of these are neutral, though some of the subtle shades I wanted were not in stock. I only picked three of them.
There are three different finishes - matte, satin, and metal. Obviously, I went in for matte. These are powdery-matte. Velvet matte. Not at all drying.

Scroll down for my review and swatches of the Rouge Dior Liquid Lipsticks.

affiliate

Gorgeous Easter Egg Surprise Palettes From Makeup Revolution

Gorgeous Easter Egg Surprise Palettes From Makeup Revolution

Reviews Cosmetopia Digest   Friday, March 16, 2018

I cannot get over the irresistibly cute Easter collection from Makeup Revolution - I need them all, for sure!
These are six colourful Easter Eggs that you open to find five eyeshadows, and two highlighters. PERFECT for travel. Perfect to look cute on your vanity. Perfect to gift someone.
Each egg is perfectly coordinated in terms of the shades inside, as well as the external colour of the egg. Get an empty six-egg box from the supermarket, stash these into it, and place on your vanity to grab Insta-eyeballs.
These are JUST £5 EACH! So that's £30 for the lot. A steal, what? Rush to get yours here in time for Easter!
Stay tuned for my review, swatches, and makeup looks with these - as soon as I saw them, I ordered the lot! 

Scroll down for details on the Easter Egg Surprises From Makeup Revolution.

affiliate

Choosing the Huda Beauty #FauxFilter Foundation Shade For Olive/Warm/Tan Skintones

Choosing the Huda Beauty #FauxFilter Foundation Shade For Olive/Warm/Tan Skintones

Videos Cosmetopia Digest   Friday, March 02, 2018

Choosing the right foundation shade in-store can be a nightmare at the best of times. All that store lighting, sales assistants with their own ideas, the distractingly huge array of products....
When buying online, the nightmare is all the worse! Different monitors, lighting, confusing online swatches....

Over the last few years, I've bought eight foundations online without being shade-matched in-store for the brand prior to buying - Tarte Amazonian Clay, By Terry Densiliss, Kevyn Aucoin SSE (advised by MUA friend), TheBalm Even Steven, The Ordinary, Chantecaille Future Skin, IT Cosmetics CC Cream, and Huda Beauty #FauxFilter.
I was singularly lucky to have hit the jackpot when it came to shade matching - with the exception of the IT Cosmetics, where Medium is too pale and Tan is way too deep for me, but that is because they do not HAVE a shade for me, rather than because I picked the wrong one. The same is the case with The Ordinary - 2.1Y is too deep, the rest are too pale or too red. Again, not because of my choice, but because of the brand's shade limitations.
In all the other six cases, I picked the perfect shade match for me, thanks to intensive googling, comparison with other foundation matches, advice from a MUA friend in one case, and guesswork.

Today, I've got swatches and demos of the Huda Beauty #FauxFilter Foundation shades for the warm-yellow/medium-tan/olive part of the spectrum - specifically, shades that cater to South Asian/Indian/Middle Eastern, and Latino skintones. Sorry, everyone else - unfortunately, this blog doesn't get much by way of PR samples (I get, what, FOUR a year? And those are mostly skincare), and I don't buy up things I don't use. Ergo, the shades I chose are in my own range, apart from a few samples I received as GWPs.

So hopefully, this will help those who are warm-yellow, medium to tan, olive-hued, in choosing the right Huda Beauty Faux Filter Foundation for them. For reference, I've also included the full range of every foundation shade I wear, and a comparison with NARS All Day Luminous Weightless Foundation.

Scroll down for swatches, demo, and review of the Huda Beauty #FauxFilter Foundation Shade For Olive/Warm/Tan Skintones.

affiliate

LookFantastic Beauty Box February 2018 Unboxing, Review

LookFantastic Beauty Box February 2018 Unboxing, Review

Unboxing Cosmetopia Digest   Thursday, March 01, 2018

As expected, February's LookFantastic Beauty Box has a Valentine's Day design, with a pink-red-gold colour scheme, and a product booklet featuring red hearts. The box is themed Beauty Rendezvous, and contains products that you would need for your "rendezvous". Tryst, if you like!
There are six products in the box, and the Elle UK magazine for the month is also included. They've recently taken to popping the mag inside the box itself, having increased the size of the beauty box. This actually makes the products inside seem smaller!

Scroll down for my review of the LookFantastic Beauty Box for February 2018.

 affiliate

INC.redible Matte My Day Liquid Lip Paint Review, Demo, Comparisons

INC.redible Matte My Day Liquid Lip Paint Review, Demo, Comparisons

Videos Cosmetopia Digest   Sunday, February 11, 2018

Metal and glossy lips may be attempting a comeback, but the matte lip trend is as strong as ever. The latest liquid lipstick on the bandwagon is the INC.redible Matte My Day Liquid Lip Paint, from Nails INC - the nail polish brand, no less. Good to see polish brands such as Models Own, Butter London, and Nails INC venture into makeup territory.
The INC.redible Matte My Day Liquid Lip Paints come in a generous 14 shades, covering everything from neutrals to brights. These are just £8, for which you get 3.8ml of product, packaged in a sturdy tube, where you can see both colour and quantity of product left. There's a doefoot applicator which does the job, and the fragrance of the lipstick is very similar to that of Jouer Long Wear Lip Cremes, or the Huda Beauty Lip Mattes - tropical and sweet, but not irritatingly strong.

Scroll down for the review and demo of the INC.redible Matte My Day Liquid Lip Paints.

affiliate

LookFantastic Beauty Box January 2018 Unboxing, Review, Contents

LookFantastic Beauty Box January 2018 Unboxing, Review, Contents

Unboxing Cosmetopia Digest   Monday, January 29, 2018

A New Year means taking stock of everything, beauty box subscriptions included. I've decided to keep just the one subscription box this year, and it is the LookFantastic Beauty Box.
Why? For starters, it's just £12 or so per month, since I'm on a long-term subscription. For another, I don't pay upfront; only each month when the box ships out. For a third, there are some nice perks, such as a discount on the amazing Advent Calendar. Fourthly, on an average, the boxes are quite nice, and come with extras such as the Elle Magazine.
So let's take a look at LookFantastic's first beauty box for 2018. They've revamped the box design - a nice periwinkle blue and mint green combo. The product leaflet has also undergone a makeover.

Scroll down for the contents of the LookFantastic Beauty Box January 2018.

affiliate

SNP Sheet Masks for Hydration in Dry Weather

SNP Sheet Masks for Hydration in Dry Weather

Skin care Cosmetopia Digest   Monday, January 22, 2018

I first came across Korean brand SNP thanks to Memebox, back in their halcyon days. The brand stands for "Shine Nature Purity". The sheet masks were gentle and soothing, and they did not break me out at all. Through 2016, I did not use too many sheet masks, because of my battle with huge nodular cystic breakouts.
Recently, I rediscovered SNP and found that they have some neat sheet masks which are actually out of the common, given the ingredients!

Scroll down for more on the SNP sheet masks from Kollshop.

pr sample

Beauty Products Used Up in December 2017

Beauty Products Used Up in December 2017

Skin care Cosmetopia Digest   Monday, January 01, 2018

Heigh ho. 2018 is here. It's been a mixed year for me, with the first half being really nice. I got over acne and started scar revision. I got back on YouTube. But then I was laid up with allergies from October, Dad got bitten by a snake, and Gramps's horrible disease (I don't even want to say the c-word) has reared its ugly head again. It makes me weep to think about Gramps.
For 2018, I only wish for good health and happiness for all my loved ones and readers. That's the most important thing.

Scroll down to see the beauty products I used up in December 2017, and for my quick thoughts on each. 

affiliate

Best of Beauty 2017: Favourite Lipsticks

Best of Beauty 2017: Favourite Lipsticks

Reviews Cosmetopia Digest   Sunday, December 31, 2017

Here's my penultimate post of the year (yes, there's one more left, and no, it isn't "Happy New Year", haha). This is the last installment of the Best of Beauty 2017 trilogy. It features my favourite lip products. Not just lipsticks - I've included my favourite bullet and liquid lipsticks, lip liners, toppers, balm, and glosses. Should probably have added a scrub - but nothing much wowed me this year, and it turns out that my favourite Lush Bubblegum breaks me out around my mouth. Pretty much all Lush products have been breaking me out badly - I wonder why!
Anyway, favourite lipsticks.

Scroll down to check out my favourite lip products for 2017 - including lipsticks, lip glosses, lip liners, balms, and more. 

affiliate

Best of Beauty 2017: Makeup Favourites Part I

Best of Beauty 2017: Makeup Favourites Part I

TheBalm Cosmetopia Digest   Friday, December 29, 2017

Mum took me shopping for clothes over Boxing Day, and it was an absolute riot, with crowds everywhere. Anyway, we compromised, with me buying mostly navy blue dresses, and a couple of greys, browns, greens, and maroons thrown in for good measure. I have no idea why I prefer sombre colours so much - it just won't go away.
I also managed to get my paws on the Beautylish Lucky Bag for 2018 - can't wait for it to arrive; stay tuned for my unboxing.
Before it arrives (it only ships out by Jan 12), let's take a quick gander at 2017's best makeup products. There are too many to go, so I've split it up into two posts. Stay tuned for part deux shortly.

Scroll down for my favourite makeup products of 2017 - these are foundations and eyeshadows.

affiliate . pr sample . purchased